


The Marks on Our Wrists Don't Mean We Don't Say Goodbye (But They Do Mean I'll See You Again)

by MapacheLuna



Series: Kyouhaba Week - Soulmates Universe [7]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, KyouHaba Week, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-20
Updated: 2015-09-20
Packaged: 2018-04-22 12:45:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4835903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MapacheLuna/pseuds/MapacheLuna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oikawa and Kuroo may have been annoying to be around for too long, but that doesn't make watching them say goodbye any easier. Shigeru supposes that even as supernaturally creepy as finding your soulmate tends to be, even that isn't enough to bend the cosmos to your favor.</p>
<p>It's a good thing Shigeru has Kyoutani around to to take his mind off of things by saying stupidly endearing things in that blunt, straightforward way of his.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Marks on Our Wrists Don't Mean We Don't Say Goodbye (But They Do Mean I'll See You Again)

**Author's Note:**

> Hot damn, I can't believe it's over. This series got A LOT more attention than I could have ever expected, so I want to thank all of you who came along on this -extremely- self-indulgent journey with me, and stuck around to the end. 
> 
> Special shout-out going out to those of you who stuck around even if you didn't ship Oikuro, and extra special shout-out to those who let themselves be convinced by my mad rambling. This series ended up having way too much Oikuro for a Kyouhaba week submission, but it's like a sickness, I couldn't help myself. (This one is further proof of that.)
> 
> So once again, thank you!
> 
> Kyouhaba Week: Day 7: Prompt/Free (I guess this can technically be a "Goodbye" prompt? Not that the main characters are the one's saying goodbye though...)

“Hey, Shigeru.” Shigeru looked up from where he had been re-tying his shoes for the fourth time to see Shinji jogging up to him with a worried frown.

“What’s wrong?” Shigeru asked, getting to his feet as Shinji came to a stop next to him.

“Ah, haven’t you noticed that something’s a little, off, with Oikawa-san today?” Shinji nodded his head to the side, where, true enough, Oikawa was wandering along one of the gym walls, bouncing a ball over his head, his demeanor almost listless. Shigeru could see Kunimi eyeing him cautiously, whispering something to Kindaichi who immediately looked over with furrowed brows.

“Huh,” Shigeru said. “I hadn’t, actually. We’re not practicing together today.” He had been setting tosses for the younger spikers before their break, so he and Oikawa had been on opposite ends of the gym all afternoon. He may have also been a little distracted by the hyperawareness of Kyoutani’s eyes following him across the gym, unrepentantly following the lines of his arms and torso with every toss he made.

He also may or may not have been bending over to retie his shoes more than he normally would because of it. The fire he had seen in the blond’s eyes the first time he’d straightened up had pretty much guaranteed that he’d keep doing it. He was starting to see what the appeal of being a tease was. The hungry look on Kyoutani’s face had only gotten more intense as the day went on, and Shigeru _knew_ that he was going to get it after practice. It set his nerves tingling. No wonder Oikawa always wore such self-satisfied smirks right after doing something unnecessarily, and usually embarrassingly, provocative; knowing someone was winding themselves up until they were practically vibrating with pent up energy because of you was intoxicating.

Shinji looked at him with such a flat expression that Shigeru was suddenly struck again by the feeling that his best friend could read his mind. “You need to stop teasing Kyoutani.” _Holy shit!_ “He completely miscalculated a jump earlier when you decided to rub your legs down in the middle of the court; he ended up in the net.”

Shigeru blinked slowly. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” That had been pretty funny. The talk Iwaizumi had given him about not picking up some of Oikawa’s “more unsavory character traits,” not so much.

Shinji’s expression suddenly cleared up. “Hey, isn’t Kuroo-san going back to Tokyo today?”

“Oh, you’re right,” Shigeru scratched his head with a grimace. “We went out with Sugawara-san and Sawamura-san yesterday for a goodbye dinner.” Shinji winced in sympathy and Shigeru could only be grateful that he didn’t ask for details.

It had been Oikawa’s idea, unsurprisingly, to invite Sugawara to Kuroo’s goodbye dinner, and after a whirlwind of wheedling, unfairly pretty cackling, and possibly some bribery, Shigeru found himself sitting around a table sandwiched between a murderous Kyoutani and stiff Iwaizumi, sitting across from a confused Sugawara and a very unamused Sawamura. Oikawa and Kuroo had sat between Iwaizumi and Sugawara and had spent most of the dinner focused on the Karasuno couple, so it had actually taken until they were ordering dessert for Shigeru to realize why the rest of them were even there at all.

_“Daichi,”_ Sugawara had said, touching Sawamura on the arm. _“Do you want anything from the dessert menu?”_

_“You want to get **dessert** , Suga?”_ He had sounded exasperated, and Shigeru couldn’t really blame him. Being the center of Oikawa and Kuroo’s attention for so long must have been exhausting. _“We can get something on the way home.”_ Sugawara had pouted and Shigeru had watched Oikawa’s face light up as he undoubtedly recognized a kindred soul. Iwaizumi had groaned quietly next to him, although how he’d noticed when he’d been unapologetically texting all throughout dinner, Shigeru still didn’t know. He probably had a Best Friend Sixth Sense, like Shinji did.

_“But Daichi, they have lava cakes here,”_ He’d pointed at the menu with a beseeching look. _“I was really looking forward to it when Kuroo told us we were coming here.”_ Shigeru had practically heard Sawamura’s resolve crumbling into dust in the face of the other setter’s earnest expression. He had been a little impressed.

_“Kyoutani,”_ He had nudged his soulmate in the side, earning himself an annoyed grunt from where he was bent over his second dish. He had been the only one to take advantage of the fact that Kuroo and Oikawa had offered to pay for everything, and Shigeru hadn’t known whether to be annoyed or impressed by how much food he was putting away. _“Sugawara-san convinced Sawamura-san to stay for dessert. Did you want to share something?”_

Kyoutani had looked up then, watching curiously as Oikawa waved a waiter over to whisper something to him while Sugawara excitedly told them all about the stellar reviews the lava cake had. _“Huh. Poor guy.”_ Shigeru had stomped on his foot.

Any annoyance he had been feeling though had immediately been washed away when the waiter came but with an absolutely beautiful, big lava cake, perfectly dusted with powdered sugar, and with what looked like raspberry syrup drizzled on top, and set it in front of a wide-eyed Sugawara.

_“Wha-,”_ He had shared a confused glance with Sawamura. _“But we didn’t order yet.”_

_“That’s because this,”_ Oikawa had pointed at the cake, _“Is from us, for you.”_ Shigeru had been surprised to be included in Oikawa’s encompassing arm sweep. Iwaizumi and Kyoutani had looked just as surprised though, so Shigeru hadn’t felt too bad about being left out of the loop.

_“A thank you?”_ Sugawara had tilted his head to the side with a slightly puzzled smile. _“For what?”_

_“You helped us find each other,”_ Kuroo had told him simply, threading his fingers through Oikawa’s on top of the table. _“And because you helped us, these guys,”_ A messy-haired head was nodded in their direction, _“Found their own soulmates. None of us would be able to say that if you hadn’t decided to act on your hunch, so, thank you.”_ Kuroo had shot him a lopsided smile, handsome and bright, across the table, echoed by Oikawa’s own dazzling smile.

Shigeru had found himself bowing slightly over the table, pinching Kyoutani in the thigh until he had stiffly inclined his head as well. _“Thank you very much, Sugawara-san,”_ He’d mumbled into the tablecloth, hearing Kyoutani mutter something vaguely grateful sounding next to him. Iwaizumi’s thanks had been slightly less awkward than theirs, and even though Sugawara had been quick to pull them out of their bows with a kind smile and even kinder words, the rest of the dinner had been suffused with the added heaviness brought on by the realization that no matter how delicious the meal or how beautiful the cake, this was one debt that they would never really be able to pay back.

“Oi,” He felt the hand on his back before he heard the gruff voice, startling him out of his thoughts. “Why’re you standing around looking like your cats got run over?”

Shigeru turned slightly to see Kyoutani looking at him with his _“I know something’s on your mind, but I don’t know what and that annoys me”_ scowl firmly in place. He’d been getting better at reading them through the past week, to the point that he was sure he could have a full conversation with Kyoutani through scowls. He couldn’t wait to test it out; it was sure to be hysterical.

“Kuroo-san’s supposed to leave today,” Shinji told him. “And Oikawa-san looks pretty down about it.” They all turned in time to see Oikawa start bouncing his ball against the wall, swinging his arm almost half-heartedly to meet it as it came back to him.

“Shit, you can almost feel the hellfire dimming around him,” Kyoutani commented way too seriously, grunting when Shigeru dug his elbow into his ribs. “Ow, shit, I’m sorry, alright? Why the hell are your elbows so pointy?”

“The better to keep you in line with, dear,” Shigeru murmured sweetly, basking in the unamused glare he got in return.

“Ew, soulmate cooties,” Shinji teased them with a smile, before it dropped back into a concerned frown. “But seriously, should we do something?”

“But what could we do?” Shigeru asked. “It’s not like we can keep Kuroo-san from going back; he kind of _lives_ in Tokyo.” At the thoughtful look crossing Shinji’s face, he rushed to add, “We’re not kidnapping a six-foot something middle-blocker, Shinji.”

“Spoilsport,” Shinji said tartly, turning his nose up mockingly in the air.

“We can always get Oikawa a goat or something,” Kyoutani suggested. “He’s probably been skimping on his blood sacrifices this week, since he’s been so busy.”

“You really need to stop saying stuff like that,” Shigeru scolded him. “People are going to start thinking you’re serious.”

“Who’s joking?” Kyoutani deadpanned.

“Hey,” A very familiar, deep voice carried into the gym from the direction of the door. “I’m looking for Oikawa Tooru?”

Oikawa practically threw the ball away from himself -Matsukawa caught it with a grunt,- spinning around with a gasp. “Tetsu-chan?”

Sure enough, Kuroo was leaning against the open door frame, saluting Coach Irihata and Mizoguchi with two fingers. “Pardon the intrusion?”

Mizoguchi buried his face into his hands with a soft groan, but Irihata just chuckled and waved him in. “They’re only good manners if you use them every time, son.”

Kuroo rubbed the back of his head as he walked in, sheepish smile firmly in place. “Right. I’ll keep that in mind, Irihata-san.” Then he was turning around to catch Oikawa just as he ran into him, a soft grunt being the only indication he gave that getting hit by seventy-two kilograms of muscle was in any way painful. “Hey, Tooru.”

“Tetsu-chan!” Oikawa pulled away just far enough to look up at him, eyes wide in disbelief. “I thought you guys were leaving in the morning?”

“Most of the team did,” Kuroo agreed easily. “But I managed to get some extra time for me and Kenma; Shrimpy had some game he wanted to show him, and I wanted to come see you before I left.” He shrugged, wrapping his arms snuggly around Oikawa’s waist. “Since I don’t know when the next time we can see each other is going to be.”

Oikawa buried his face in his shoulder. “I thought I was visiting you next. We’re going dancing, right?” Shigeru swallowed hard at the painful note in his captain’s voice. It was hard to listen to.

“Yeah, we are,” Kuroo hummed. “I’m going to take you out for lunch at my favorite seafood place, then I’ll introduce you to my buddy Bokuto -he’s ridiculous, you’ll love him and he’ll definitely love you,-” Oikawa pulled his hair, but he just laughed and continued, “And then I’ll take you home to meet my parents, and then we’ll go dance the night away.” He pulled Oikawa’s hand out of his hair and kissed it. “It’s going to be fun, so stop looking so sad, alright?”

“I don’t want you to go,” Shigeru’s heart broke with Oikawa’s voice, and he was brushing Kyoutani’s hand with his own before he even realized he’d reached for it. Before he could even begin to feel embarrassed though, Kyoutani was intertwining their fingers, holding onto him with that familiar firm and gentle grip of his, squeezing the barest amount for Shigeru’s heart to unclench.

“I don’t want to go either,” Kuroo admitted, and his smile was just a touch too sad for Shigeru’s liking. “But it’s not forever.”

“It’s going to feel like forever,” Oikawa muttered, leaning into the hand running through his hair. “Am I being selfish if I say I want you to move to Miyagi?”

“A little,” Kuroo laughed. “But not any more selfish than me telling you to come live with me in Tokyo.”

“It’s a good thing neither of us are that selfish then, because our coaches would kill us,” Oikawa whispered loudly, giving Kuroo a small smile when Mizoguchi muttered something about ‘insolent brats’ and Irihata covered his laugh with a cough.

“God, I’m going to miss you,” Kuroo murmured, running the back of his finger down Oikawa’s face. “I got too used to seeing this pretty face every day.”

“I already miss you,” Oikawa choked, pulling Kuroo’s face down to press their foreheads together, his expression tight. “ _This sucks so much._ ”

Shigeru had to look away; it wouldn’t feel right watching his senpai cry, and it definitely looked like that conversation was heading in that direction pretty quickly.

“Hold on, Issei, are you _crying_?” Shigeru heard Hanamaki hiss behind him.

“I can’t help it; this is really emotional, okay?” Matsukawa was definitely sniffling. He resolved not to turn around either.

Kyoutani’s hand tightened suddenly around his, startling him into looking at the other boy. Kyoutani was watching Kuroo and Oikawa, brows lowered and a tightness in his jaw that looked painful.

“Hey, you’re going to break a tooth,” Shigeru poked him in the cheek. “Stop that.” He could only make a questioning noise when Kyoutani reached up for his hand, pulling it down to look at his wrist. At this point, both of them were pretty familiar with each other’s soulmate marks; he didn’t think there was anything worth that level of scrutiny on it anymore, but he didn’t say anything as Kyoutani ran a thumb over it.

“I’ve known that you’re my soulmate for a year,” Kyoutani began, voice quiet. “And I’ve had you for maybe a week. But the one thing that hasn’t changed between then and now,” He slid his gaze up to look Shigeru in the eyes, “Is that the hardest thing for me to do at the end of the day is watch you walk away from me.”

Shigeru’s heart hiccupped up into his throat as Kyoutani glanced back at Kuroo and Oikawa. “I don’t know what I’d do if you had to leave like that.”

“Kyoutani,” Shigeru whined softly, taking his hand back to hide his red face. “You can’t just say stuff like that, what the fuck.”

“Why not,” Kyoutani quirked an eyebrow. “It’s the truth.” His soulmate’s blunt, shameless honesty may be the number one reason he got into so many fights, but it was also disarmingly sweet and romantic, and it was going to be the reason Shigeru would have to start taking hypertension medication in the future, he was sure of it.

“Well, for what it’s worth,” Shigeru peeked through his fingers at him. “I’m glad neither of us has to find out.” Kyoutani made a noise of agreement deep in his throat, pulling him closer so they were pressed together, shoulders all the way to their legs.

“Me too.”

A glance back at Oikawa and Kuroo let him know that they had moved onto to the desperate kissing part of their goodbye, and Iwaizumi was standing nearby, pointedly not looking, but obviously getting ready to intervene if it started getting too out of hand. Shigeru didn’t think that was going to be a problem though; Oikawa may have practically been pulling Kuroo’s shirt down with the grip he had on his collar and Kuroo’s hand _may_ have been half on Oikawa’s bare skin where his shirt had lifted in the back, but the way they were pausing in between kisses to just rest their faces against each other made him think that they didn’t have anything but closeness on the mind.

“You know,” Shinji spoke up. “Normally seeing them do their thing is pretty uncomfortable,”  -Understatement of the year- “But this is just making me kind of sad.”

“Yeah,” Shigeru sighed. “Me too.”

“I’m never letting you go,” Kyoutani muttered, pressing even closer to his side.

Shigeru raised his eyebrows at him. “What if we go to different universities?”

“Don’t care,” Kyoutani grunted, not looking at him. “We’re moving in together after high school, anyway.”

Shigeru could see Shinji’s jaw pop open out of the corner of his eye, and he couldn’t help but echo the sentiment. Kyoutani looked completely unperturbed by what he’d just said, but Shigeru could see the telltale blush creeping up his ears. He knew exactly what he’d said, and he wasn’t taking it back.

He wanted to laugh and scream and maybe shake Kyoutani a little for dropping that kind of news on him while their senpai were having a moment straight out of one of Shinji’s guilty pleasure dramas, but in the end, all he could do was huff a breath of laughter and lean over to press a lingering kiss onto Kyoutani’s red cheek.

_I love you too._

**Author's Note:**

> So this series is technically over, but there are still some things I meant to write for it that I didn't get to (Iwaizumi and Akaashi actually meeting face-to-face, damn it), so I don't want to say that I'm going to continue this series...but just, you know, this may not be the last fic in this universe. Or something.
> 
> THANK YOU FOR STICKING THIS THROUGH, YOU BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE. °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°


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